Russian Pipeline Gas Exports to Europe Drop to a Post-Soviet Low
Russian gas exports to Europe via pipelines plummeted to a post-Soviet low in 2022 as its largest customer cut imports due to the conflict in Ukraine and a major pipeline was damaged by mysterious blasts, Gazprom data and Reuters calculations showed.The European Union, traditionally Russia's largest consumer for oil and gas, has for years spoken about cutting its reliance on Russian energy, but Brussels got serious after the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine in February.State-controlled Gazprom…
Nord Stream 2 Pipeline 99% Complete
The much-politicized Nord Stream 2 undersea gas pipeline from Russia to Germany is 99% complete, the pipeline operator said on Wednesday, after the pipelay vessel Akademik Cherskiy finished its initially planned workload.The $11 billion Nord Stream 2, designed to bypass Russia's political foe Ukraine and double the capacity of the existing Nord Stream pipeline to 110 billion cubic meters per year, has been a focal point of tensions between Moscow and Washington.The construction of the pipeline has been hampered by sanctions introduced by the United States at the end of 2019…
China's LNG Woes Boost Coal, But for How Long?
A sure sign that China is struggling with its planned switch to natural gas from coal for winter heating is the spot price of Australian coal climbing back above $100 a tonne. Spot cargoes of thermal coal from Australia's Newcastle port , an Asian benchmark for the fuel used mainly in power plants, rose to $100.65 a tonne on Wednesday, breaching the triple-figure barrier for the first time since Nov. 1 and hitting their highest since mid-September. The price is also 9.2 percent higher than a recent low of $92.20 touched on Nov. 23 as the market responds to signs that Beijing is relaxing its anti-coal stance due to the scarcity of natural gas and the sharply higher prices for the cleaner-burning fuel that is available.
